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Can BJJ cause brain damage?

Author

Emma Payne

Published Jan 19, 2026

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) athletes may be at less risk of causing long-lasting injury to the brain than has previously been feared, new research has revealed. BJJ is a popular martial art that exposes participants to recurrent intermittent asphyxiation due to controlled application of neck chokes.

Does jiu-jitsu give brain damage?

As a grappling sport, BJJ puts practitioners at risk for incurring a sports-related concussion. In this retrospective survey, 25.2% of BJJ practitioners report having a concussion while engaging in BJJ in their lifetime.

Is BJJ good for the brain?

They found preliminary evidence that the BJJ athletes had a higher resting blood flow to the brain, alongside in-tact cognitive function, when compared to a control group of athletes matched by age, gender, and cardiorespiratory fitness.

Can you get CTE from BJJ?

CTE has also been found in amateur wrestlers, so no impacts to the head does not always mean no CTE. BJJ is a niche sport, and relatively new. CTE can only be diagnosed posthumously. These things make it unlikely for anyone in the medical research community to try to find out whether BJJ alone can result in CTE.

Can you get brain damage from martial arts?

Actually, the sports and fighting styles that cause the brain damage topic to be researched more and more are almost never Eastern martial arts. Western ones like boxing, kickboxing, and sometimes even wrestling are some of the worst offenders in this category.

26 related questions found

Which martial art does not cause brain damage?

Judo. It makes you strong and learns you usefull self defense techniques. It is a nice sport and you can't get bad injuries if your practice it safe.

What is the most brutal martial art?

Deadliest martial arts in the world are Krav Maga, Line, Rough and Tumble, Ninjutsu, Vale Tudo, Bacom, Eskrima, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Muay Thai (Thai Boxing), Silat, Kung Fu, Taekwondo, MCMAP, Karate, and Sambo.

Does BJJ cause cauliflower ears?

Cauliflower ear is a condition commonly found in wrestlers. Since there are many parallels between wrestling and Jiu-Jitsu, cauliflower ears can often be found in Jiu-Jitsu athletes. Some find the condition repulsive. Some accept it as a harsh reality of the sport.

Is BJJ safe to learn?

Thus, you can spend more time learning BJJ without getting hurt. The research performed by the SAGE journals showed us that BJJ is the safest fighting style compared to the other combat arts such as taekwondo or wrestling.

Do UFC fighters have CTE?

UFC fighters may be tough, but it eventually takes a toll on their health. After all, CTE is quite a disturbing aftermath for all boxers and MMA fighters. Many fighters develop 'Chronic traumatic encephalopathy' because of repeated blows to the head, which leads to brain injury.

Is BJJ good for mental health?

BJJ has long been discussed in the community as a serious mental health booster, particularly when it comes to depression, anxiety, and other common psychological things individuals deal with on a regular basis.

Is Jiu-Jitsu good for mental health?

You don't have to look very hard to find the "surface level" benefits Jiu-Jitsu can have on your mental health. It can improve your fitness, increase your confidence, help you build a friendship group, test your brain, release endorphins and serotonin, and probably lots of other things that are really hard to spell.

Does Jiu-Jitsu make you stronger?

One of the major focuses of BJJ training as far as strength and conditioning goes, is its direct stimulation of the core muscles and hips. BJJ training develops your core muscles unlike any other martial art. In fact, your core is where the majority of your strength comes from in BJJ.

How does jiu-jitsu change your life?

It's a passion and a lifelong journey of learning – not just techniques and submissions, but also life lessons. That's why those who train BJJ often take what they've learned on the mats and apply it to everyday life. BJJ enables a smaller person to overcome a bigger, stronger opponent.

Is BJJ sparring safe?

Compared to other high impact martial arts styles, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is typically much safer. There is no striking in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, so there is a much smaller chance for serious injuries like head trauma, broken noses, and more. This makes the injury rate lower than mixed martial arts, boxing, judo, and more.

Why you should try jiu-jitsu?

BJJ boosts your fitness and works for all body types. It provides the requisite strength to attain your desired skill and fitness level. Workout sessions are fun-filled and engaging. Brazilian jiu-jitsu gets you in shape as you learn effective life-saving skills.

Is BJJ brutal?

No, BJJ training is not violent. In fact, it's quite the opposite. The training is challenging. It teaches you the discipline necessary to get better at things.

Why is Jiu-Jitsu so difficult?

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is at its core an aerobically challenging activity. During live rolling, hard drilling, and certainly during competition, you will be exerting large amounts of energy as you attempt your moves against a resisting opponent – or at least at a very high pace during drilling.

Is Jiu-Jitsu injury prone?

The injury rate of 9.2 per 1000 exposures observed in our study of 8 BJJ tournaments suggests an almost 9 times lower risk of injuries in BJJ competitions compared with taekwondo competitions. Taekwondo competitors were most at risk for lower limb injuries, followed by head and neck injuries.

Should I squeeze cauliflower ear?

Over the course of the next 2-4 days, that fluid will clot and calcify, and turn into what is known as cauliflower ear--a rock hard lump where that fluid-filled pocket used to be. To prevent cauliflower ear, the cavity will need to be drained, and then compressed to prevent refilling.

Why do wrestlers ears get messed up?

The most common cause of cauliflower ear is a hit to the ear -- or repeated hits to the ear -- that leads to hematomas, or small collections of blood that clot and block the flow of blood and nutrients. These can also occur when skin is pulled away from cartilage, the semi-rigid tissue that gives the ear its shape.

Do all black belts have cauliflower ear?

Do all grapplers get cauliflower ear? No, not all grapplers get cauliflower ear. Some people seem more susceptible to the condition than others. We've been around grappling all our lives and have seen grapplers get cauliflower ear after only a few weeks and others train for years and never have any symptoms.

What is the strongest fighting style?

First developed for the Israeli Defence Force, Krav Maga is the world's most effective and dangerous form of combat and is known as a non-sport form of martial arts.

Is BJJ good for street fighting?

BJJ can work in a street fight when faced with just one attacker but is rarely helpful against multiple. The techniques you can learn in BJJ are highly effective for taking down a single opponent, controlling them, and convincing them to give up through submission and chokeholds.

What is the hardest martial art to master?

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is considered to be the most difficult martial art to learn. Even to athletic students, mastering this discipline is unlikely to come easy. But the difficulty of learning Jiu Jitsu is attractive to many students.